Avon Players Theatre1185 Washington Rd, Rochester Hills, MI 48306
Metro Detroit Oakland County City
Rochester Hills
A Dodge mansion, a cider mill running since 1863 and Madonna's high school in the hills
- People (2025 estimate)
- 77,539
- Land area
- 32.8 sq mi · 85.0 km²
- From downtown
- 23.7 miles · 38 km · north
- Incorporated
- 1984
Nothing on our calendar here this week yet.
01 / Why it matters
Why Rochester Hills matters
Rochester Hills is the old Avon Township, which became a city on November 20, 1984, after a long legal fight. Neighboring Rochester had split off back in 1967, won state approval in 1974 to annex a big piece of the township, and the court battles over it dragged on until 1981.
The crown jewel is Meadow Brook Hall, the 110-room mansion John Dodge's widow, Matilda Dodge Wilson, built with her second husband between 1926 and 1929. In 1957 they gave the estate to Michigan State University, and it grew into Oakland University, whose campus straddles the line with Auburn Hills.
In the fall the line at Yates Cider Mill snakes out the door for fresh cider and donuts; the mill has been running since 1863, in a building from 1894. Summer brings outdoor concerts at Meadow Brook Amphitheatre, and this is where Madonna grew up, graduating from Rochester Adams High School in 1976.
02 / Known for
What Rochester Hills is known for
Meadow Brook Hall, a National Historic Landmark since 2012 and the fourth-largest historic house museum in the United States
Madonna's childhood: she grew up in what was then Avon Township and graduated from Rochester Adams High School in 1976
Yates Cider Mill, which bills itself as Michigan's oldest working water-powered mill
Oakland University, whose campus lies partly in Rochester Hills
03 / What’s on
What’s on in Rochester Hills
Nothing on our calendar in Rochester Hills right now. Try the neighbors:
04 / Places
9 places on our site in Rochester Hills
Avon Players Theatre1185 Washington Rd, Rochester Hills, MI 48306
Emagine Rochester Hills200 Barclay Circle, Rochester Hills, MI 48307
Meadow Brook Amphitheatre3554 Walton Boulevard, Rochester Hills, MI 48309
Muldoon's3982 W Auburn Rd, Rochester Hills, MI 4830905 / What to do
If you’re in Rochester Hills
Meadow Brook Hall
An 88,000-square-foot, 110-room Tudor Revival mansion on the Oakland University grounds; you can tour it and see paintings by van Dyck and Gainsborough on the walls.
Official site ↗Yates Cider Mill
A cider mill founded in 1863, with fresh cider and donuts, an apple tent in September and October, and pony rides and a petting zoo on weekends.
Official site ↗Rochester Hills Museum at Van Hoosen Farm
The city museum on an old farm on Van Hoosen Road; it's open Fridays and Saturdays noon to 3 p.m., with a farmhouse tour at 1 p.m.
Official site ↗Meadow Brook Amphitheatre
An outdoor concert venue on Walton Boulevard that opened in 1964 and was the Detroit Symphony Orchestra's summer home through 1991.
Official site ↗
06 / History
Rochester Hills through the years
- 1817
The first European settler, James Graham, arrives with his family.
- 1835
Avon Township is organized.
- 1908
John and Matilda Dodge buy Meadow Brook Farms as a country retreat.
- 1929
Meadow Brook Hall is finished at a cost of $4 million.
- 1957
Matilda Dodge Wilson and her husband give the estate to Michigan State University, creating what becomes Oakland University.
- 1984
On November 20 Avon Township becomes the City of Rochester Hills.
07 / Born here
4 people in our lexicon were born here
08 / People
Famous names from here
- Madonna grew up in what was then Avon Township and graduated from Rochester Adams High School in 1976
- Matilda Dodge Wilson built Meadow Brook Hall and founded Oakland University; in 1940 she became Michigan's lieutenant governor, the first woman to hold that office anywhere in the United States
- Brad Keselowski NASCAR driver born in Rochester Hills, 2012 Cup Series champion
Sources
Population and area are Census Bureau figures (Rochester Hills city).
- 2020 Census, Michigan (PL 94-171)
- Census Bureau population estimates: cities and towns
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rochester_Hills,_Michigan
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meadow_Brook_Hall
- meadowbrookhall.org
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madonna
- yatescidermill.com
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oakland_University
- rochesterhills.org/museum
- 313presents.com/venue/meadow-brook-amphitheatre/meadow-brook-amphitheatre-a-z-guide
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meadow_Brook_Amphitheatre
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matilda_Dodge_Wilson
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brad_Keselowski
- rochesterhills.org
Change since 2020, per the Census Bureau estimate: +1.6 percent.
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